Print and the EnvironmentThere are many misconceptions about the sustainability of Print Media. Of course we are an industry that is based on raw materials that require energy to manufacture but we are also responsible for a product which is largely renewable and recyclable.

In Australia, where almost all ancient forests are protected, paper comes from managed semi-natural forests or plantations where the cycle of planting, growing and logging is carefully controlled. The paper industry has a number of respected certification schemes ensuring the paper you use has come from a sustainable forest source.

Forests are part of the cycle that helps remove CO2 from the atmosphere. This extends from trees to wood and paper products, which continue to store the carbon through their lifetime and help to reduce climate change. The fact that paper products are recyclable and the raw material is renewable means that their lifecycle can be extended, prolonging the benefit and reducing waste into the bargain.

“Go paperless”, “go green” and “save trees” are common themes these days as many corporations and governments encourage their customers and employees to switch to electronic transactions or e-communicaton. In Australia more than 234 million items of e-waste end up in landfill each year. In any absence of e-waste recycling programmes, e-waste volumes are forecast to triple by 2020 (Source: Tipping Point: Australia’s E-waste Crisis 2009 Update).

Paper is from renewable resources, recyclable and produced by an environmentally-conscious industry whose future depends on planting more trees than it consumes, and which is progressively improving standards in the whole supply chain.